Loom for weaving slide fastener stringers



July 29, 1969 J. E. BURBANK ,4

LOOM FOR WEAVING SLIDE FASTENER STRINGERS Filed March 21, 1968 INVENTOR John E.Burbank. BY

ATTORNE United States Patent US. Cl. 139-11 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A shuttleless loom for producing woven slide fastener stringers has guide means for shifting a fastener element strip on both sides of the fell of the fabric over and under the weft laying needle while the strip continues in substantially a straight line movement as it is being woven in place along the edge of the tape.

This invention is an improvement in looms for weaving a slide fastener stringer wherein a filamentary fastener element strip, usually in the form of a coil, is woven into one edge of a tape.

Several suggestions have heretofore been made for producing a unitary woven stringer, the best known eX- ample being that disclosed in the patent to Hendley, #3,123,102. Such prior proposals involved the shedding of the fastener strip in the same manner as the warp threads so as to accommodate the shuttle or weft laying needle. This involves a rather severe bending of the coil at the fell of the fabric and also requires a substantial up and down movement of a portion of the coil where it enters the guide or heddle which moves with the change of shed of warp threads. An object of by invention, therefore, is to avoid any severe twisting or bending of the fastener element strip. A further object is to reduce the maximum up and down travel of the coil.

In pursuance of these and other objectives, my invention is embodied in a loom of the shuttleless type which is now commonly employed in the weaving of slide fastener tapes. The filamentary strip is guided into the edge of the tape in a horizontal direction without any substantial bending at the fell of the fabric. An up and down movement is given to the strip suificient to bring it alternately over and under the needle path and at the same time a portion of the strip and tape on the feed-out side of the fell is also given an up and down movement. This not only avoids any severe distortion of the fastener strip during weaving, but since only a small up and down movement is imparted to the guides for the fastener strip, it feeds smoothly through such guides without having to be forced.

In the accompanying drawings, I have shown for purposes of illustration, one embodiment which the invention may assume in practice. In these drawings:

FIGS. 1 and 2 are diagrammatic plan views indicating two positions of the fastener element strip guide;

FIG. 3 is a cross section on line 3 -3 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a cross section on line 4-4 of FIG. 2; and

FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic view in perspective of the weaving operation showing one position of the guides in full line-s and the other in dotted lines.

Since the essential mechanisms of needle looms as used in making narrow fabric are well known in the art, I have indicated in the drawings only portions of the elements relating to the present invention and have shown the Weaving operation diagrammatically. The Weft laying needle N has an eye 8 carrying a double loop of weft thread W through each shed of upper and lower warp threads indicated by the numerals 9 and 10- respectively in FIG. 5. A knitting needle 11 catches such loops of weft thread and knits them into a selvage edge 12. The fastener element strip S which is herein shown as a coil filament, is led into the opposite edge of the tape by a horizontally arranged tubular guide 13. This guide is moved up and down so as alternately to place it above and below the needle, and preferably at each change of the shed of warp threads, such movement, of course, taking place While the needle is in its withdrawn position as seen in FIG. 5. For this purpose, the guide 13 may be secured to a bracket 14 which in turn can be actuated by a cam from a suitable part of the loom mechanism.

The tape is supported adjacent the fell along a portion of its width near the selvage edge by means of a stationary beam 15 and a spring finger 16 bears on the upper side of the tape opposite the beam to guide that portion of the tape in a horizontal path. As the fastener element strip S is woven into the tape by the weft thread W, it passes to the feed-out side of the fell through a U-shaped guide having lower and upper fingers 17 and 18 respec tively, such fingers preferably also extending over the adjacent portion of fabric. This U-shaped guide has an up and down movement imparted to it simultaneously with that of the strip guide 13. For this purpose, it is also preferably attached to the bracket 14 which carries the guide 13 so as to move always in unison therewith.

In operation, assuming that the strip guide 13 and bracket 14 are in the upper position, as seen in FIGS. 2, 4 and 5, the needle end is projected under the guide 13 into the shed of warp threads 9 and 10 where the weft thread is caught by the needle 11, and the needle then withdraws. Next the guide 13 and bracket 14 move to their down position as seen in FIGS. 1 and 3 and also as indicated in dotted lines in FIG. 5 while at the same time, the shed of warp threads may be changed. The needle then is projected over the guide 13 thus carrying the weft thread around the guide, and as the needle end approaches its forward stroke, the weft thread slips off the end of the guide in between convolutions of the coil so as to bind the coil to the edge of the tape.

As a result of my invention, it will be seen that the coil or other type of fastener element strip is led to and beyond the fell of the fabric and woven into the edge of the tape with only a minimum of distortion at the point of weaving. At the same time, there is required only a minimal travel up and down of the coil so that it moves smoothly through the tubular guide which is always arranged in a horizontal direction. It will, of course, be understood that such terms as horizontal and up and down, or over and under are used only for convenience in descrpition and a loom embodying the same improvements could be arranged to operate in other positions.

I claim:

1. In a shuttleless loom for producing a woven slide fastener stringer with a filamentary fastener element strip woven into one edge of a tape, said loom having a weft laying needle adapted to be projected through and withdrawn from each shed of warp threads and means for catching loops of weft thread so projected and forming a selvage on the opposite edge of the tape; the combination of (a) stationary guide means aranged adjacent the fell of the fabric for maintaining that portion of the tape near its selvage edge at a substantially constant level as it is woven;

(b) a fastener element strip guide adapted to lead such strip in a horizontal direction to the fell of the fabric, said strip guide being movable to shift said strip vertically whie maintaining its horizontal direction alternately between a position below and a position above the path of said laying needle during 3 4 times when said needle is withdrawn from the shed; References Cited and UNI ED T P TEN (c) means located on the feed-out side of the fell for T STA ES A TS moving said strip and a portion of the woven tape 2,651,330 9/1953 Mostertz 139-11 3,123,103 3/1964 Hendley 139-11 to which it is attached, up and down in unison with 5 the movement of said strip guide. 2. The combination defined in claim 1 wherein said FOREIGITI PATENTS moving means on the feed-out side of the fell in a U- 3611765 6/1962 Swltzerlandshaped guide adapted to embrace the attached fastener OTHER REFERENCES element strip ad acent the fell. 10

3. The combination defined in claim 2 wherein said Herrmann PP- 2 1 P y 13, 1967- U-shaped guide is rigidly attached to said strip guide of clause (b) so that the two move together. HENRY JAUDON, Prim ry EXaminel 4. The combination defined in claim 1 wherein said stationary guide means consists of a beam under the tape 15 US. Cl. X.R. reaching only part way across the tape from the selvage 139116, 124

edge, and a finger adapted to bear on top of the tape opposite said beam. 

